10 Sites That Let You View Your Web Traffic

One crucial aspect of analytics is the necessity of scoping out your competition. Obsessing over the stats on your own site is all well and good, but you need to keep an eye on your neighbors, too — checking out their bounce rates, keywords, referral sources and click-thru numbers could give some insight into your business.

There are some concerns about the accuracy of Compete's numbers and the size of its samples, so it isn't known as a great first option for an analytics program. But if you already have a good system for analyzing your own site and happen to have an extra $249 a month lying around (for the most basic plan), Compete has solid information on trends and is an excellent way to spy on your rivals. Compete bills itself as a leading source for industry research and "consumer behavior data" that will help you enhance your marketing strategies and optimize your site. Again, if you have the funds — and the staff to crunch the numbers — it can't hurt to try.